[arunphilip]

Originally Posted by GTO

What is a good brand to switch to? Which are the top 2 - 3 brands in the split a/c market today in terms of quality?

When I was in Chennai, I found Samsung to be good. There were times when I'd run it continuously for 2-3 days at a time (hey, a Bangalorean in Chennai can't take it!) and had no problems at all.

I didn't do any company servicing, but did clean the internal unit's filters and hosed down the outdoor unit once.

Support was excellent - while I never needed them for any repairs/issues, when I did want to remove the AC before vacating my rental apartment, I called Samsung CC around 11 am, and at 4 pm the technician was at home.

Anecdotally, I've also heard good stuff about LG.

With both LG and Samsung being behemoths in the Indian appliance market, I think they should both be on your shortlist.

[sagarpadaki]

Originally Posted by GTO

Guys, am seriously fed up with the shoddy quality of new Daikin air-cons.

What is a good brand to switch to? Which are the top 2 - 3 brands in the split a/c market today in terms of quality?

Thanks!

I would recommend LG. I do not know if they are in top 3 but they work well. Their top end models are well designed and robust.

Service is also very good(at least here in Bangalore). Regular cleaning of filters and stuff should be enough to keep them running. I say that LG is the Toyota of Home Appliances. Nothing fancy but they run long and steadfast.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by GTO

Guys, am seriously fed up with the shoddy quality of new Daikin air-cons.

What is a good brand to switch to? Which are the top 2 - 3 brands in the split a/c market today in terms of quality?

Thanks!

My son has two General and they were giving him problems intermittently. Evem with AMC they charge for MB repair. Similarly I am no fan of Daikin service in Delhi, which is at best, ordinary.

Your best bet today is LG Dual Inverter Split AC. The USP is
. No stabiliser required if the voltage fluctuates within 140 and 260V.
. Excellent after sales service.
. Unbeatable AMC (at around 15K) for total of 5 years. The AMC includes Gas, Electronics and two services annually.

I have no idea of Mumbai, but in Delhi Paytm offers lucrative deals on AC, with any where between 10% and 13% cash back. Add another 2,500/ cashback from ICICI and you get a sweet deal.
I have yet to come across any other manufacturer offer better AMC terms.

[GTO]

Thanks guys!

Yes, have heard very good things about O General & LG. LG's 5-year AMC sounds like its made for an extended warranty fan like me.

What about Hitachi? We recently bought one for the office and it seems really good. What's the general consensus on Hitachi air-cons?

[D4d-maniac]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thanks guys!

Yes, have heard very good things about O General & LG. LG's 5-year AMC sounds like its made for an extended warranty fan like me.

What about Hitachi? We recently bought one for the office and it seems really good. What's the general consensus on Hitachi air-cons?

I had researched on O General, Hitachi and Daikin about a year ago before the installation of a 54 ton central AC plant at our office. My general impression about these companies,

1. O General: Representatives from this company were mostly focused on their Japanese technology and that their entire units were imported. On deeper digging, they were manufactured in China. They had a price premium of about 30% over the other brands and long term support was sketchy after the company stopped importing that product.

2. Hitachi: Large manufacturing base in India but offered warranty of 5 years on the entire unit.

3. Daikin: Large manufacturing plants in India with a warranty of 10 years and a great dealer network in my area.

I found that O General was over-hyped and that Hitachi and Daikin offer much better support/warranty at a much better price.

[Thad E Ginathom]

After our Samsungs finally wore out, and our disaster with a Sharp, and some buying used, we have bought two new Mitsubishi Electrical. They are very effective, great coolers, and give the impression of being well built.

Longer-term report will come... After longer term!

[Aroy]

Actually there is a major difference between service and maintenance of Commercial/Industrial units and Domestic ones. Each has separate service departments. While Commercial units are taken care of by well trained and experienced staff who stick to the norms and quality laid down, as the units are much more expensive and have to be maintained for a couple of decades. Domestic service is normally hived off to third party, who seem to have a large manpower turnover and tend to cut corners.

So evaluating an AC service by experiencing commercial products is not a very wise decision.

[sgiitk]

Originally Posted by GTO

Guys, am seriously fed up with the shoddy quality of new Daikin air-cons.

What is a good brand to switch to? Which are the top 2 - 3 brands in the split a/c market today in terms of quality?

I will put Copper condensers and evaporators at the top of my list. The R40x and Inverter is an additional requirement. I will suggest General (O-General as some call it), Mitsubishi, and maybe Panasonic. My feedback is also that Daikin has gone to the dogs after they indigenized. All three Daikin (Japanese), General and Panasonic have given me trouble of late. I have a feeling that our mechanics have not mastered the R40x situation. R40x needs about 120psi for working, while R22 was happy with 60psi.

[saket77]

Guys, How is Bluestar as a brand for home AC? Have seen many successful installations in corporates. Worth considering?

[tht'snotME]

Originally Posted by saket77

Guys, How is Bluestar as a brand for home AC? Have seen many successful installations in corporates. Worth considering?

We have a Blue star 1.5 ton AC running from past 10 years, recharged gas once. Bluestar is very good but it is on the costlier side but worth a buy.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thanks guys!

Yes, have heard very good things about O General & LG. LG's 5-year AMC sounds like its made for an extended warranty fan like me.

What about Hitachi? We recently bought one for the office and it seems really good. What's the general consensus on Hitachi air-cons?

With all the usual recommendations I will throw in mine for Carrier. We have 3 running at home right now. 2 window and 1 split. Experience in last 3 years has been quite good. Except for the occasional service at the start of summer season they haven't given any kind of trouble. Cooling is great as well.

No personal experience with General but have experienced them at my In laws and other relatives. Cooling is fabulous and all of them have always praised it. IMO General is like Sony is in TV field. Overpriced but top notch quality.

[GTO]

Thanks guys!

Coincidentally, I met with an air-con expert in the afternoon and he vouched for Mitsubishi, Hitachi & LG. In particular, he was recommending Mitsubishi and said their air-cons are top notch.

He also agreed that Daikin is no more how it used to be. Sucks when companies make quality compromises like this. We have a total of 10 air-cons, 6 of which are Daikins, but they have lost us as a customer for life.

[Mortis]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thanks guys!

Coincidentally, I met with an air-con expert in the afternoon and he vouched for Mitsubishi, Hitachi & LG. In particular, he was recommending Mitsubishi and said their air-cons are top notch.

He also agreed that Daikin is no more how it used to be. Sucks when companies make quality compromises like this. We have a total of 10 air-cons, 6 of which are Daikins, but they have lost us as a customer for life.

GTO right now I believe Mistubishi HEAVY INDUSTRIES is on top in terms of quality. Mitsubishi ELECTRIC is a separate company and while good they aren't in the same league as MHI. Hitachi and Panasonic are both good too. If you want I can PM you the contact for a multi brand dealer. His pricing is competitive and service guys are also better than the regular chaps that most companies employ.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Ours is Mitsubishi Electric.

Recently, we put our second-hand Daikin on a service contract with the people from whom we bought the Mitsubishi machines. They said it is about 8 years old, it's end of life might be a year or two, and they won't take it on full AMC --- which I didn't expect anyway. Notable, though, is its overall build quality: the plastic of the indoor unit is absolutely solid and does not bend if you push. It would not surprise me if it lasted longer than predicted! On the strength (no pun intended) of this, I was going to buy Daikin again, but something (recounted earlier) put my wife off the brand. I'm glad about that now.

May not be all models, but the Mitsubishis come with protective paint on the copper tubes. Worth having in a corrosive atmosphere. Don't expect bells and whistles, just a machine with basic functions that work. Actually, I think the totl inverter (one step above ours) does have a follow-you magic eye --- but that's as fancy as it gets. The usual timers of course, including multiple real-time on-off switching on the higher models.

Panasonic is hood for bells and whistles. I think Hitachi has a filter-cleaning gadget, which is a really neat idea, but perhaps just something else to go wrong.

Revisiting the copper love. Why the aluminium hate? I think copper is actually a better conductor of heat than aluminium, but it is often said that the aluminium coils cannot be repaired. Is that really true? Or is it just that the local-street guys don't know how, or don't have the equipment? Aluminium can be welded. I think it can be brazed, too, which is what the guys do to the copper.

[GTO]

Thanks dudes! Went & bought a Hitachi as:

1. Everyone had a good thing to say about them.

2. Vijay Sales has an extended warranty (VS+) for 5 years that covers everything...like a bumper-to-bumper car warranty . The cost of this extended warranty for 1 + 4 years was 8k. Vijay Sales doesn't carry Mitsubishi.

3. I like the look of the Hitachi unit.

4. We'd recently bought another Hitachi and its very, very good at maintaining the set temperature. A lot better than the Daikins I'm used to.

Originally Posted by Mortis

If you want I can PM you the contact for a multi brand dealer. His pricing is competitive and service guys are also better than the regular chaps that most companies employ.

Thank you! Please share his contact here itself so that other BHPians can also benefit .